76ers GM Elton Brand remembers Kobe Bryant: ‘We all lost someone that was special to us, special to this area, special to the league’

Elton Brand, the 76ers general manager, was visibly shaken Monday in giving a statement to the media concerning the death of Kobe Bryant and the eight others who died in Sunday’s helicopter crash in California.

Brand, who played 17 years in the NBA, didn’t take any questions from the media. Here was his statement:

“Thanks everyone for coming. I wish it was under different circumstances. I will make myself available post-trade deadline and talk about the team, the vision and strategy, things like that. But today I wanted to make a statement about the tragic loss of Kobe yesterday, his daughter Gigi and everyone who lost their lives on the helicopter. My condolences to Vanessa [Bryant], his family and all the families who lost their loved ones in that tragic accident yesterday. Kobe meant a lot to us all. Whether it was just what he accomplished, but how he accomplished it, his hard work, his tenacity, his passion, getting the most out of his talent. The Philadelphia roots. We all lost someone that was special to us, special to this area, special to the league. We will try to commemorate him tomorrow [Tuesday, when the Sixers host Golden State]. Hopefully show how much this area loved him, and continue to do so. It’s a tough time for the area, tough time for the organization, he will certainly be missed. With that, I would like to thank everybody for coming. It is a tough time for us, and I am sure the Lakers organization, I can’t fathom what they are going through today also. Thank you.”